Christian Carlos
Former Mexican Prime Minister and three-time presidential candidate Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas criticized the criticism of the third government report of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
"I see the country with many shortcomings," he declared during the Third International Meeting of Government and Civil Society, to which José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, former president of the Spanish government, was invited. The meeting of leaders took place during the International Book Fair –FIL–. In his presentation "Equality versus freedom, freedom versus equality: is it possible to resolve the perennial tension?"
The Mexican politician pointed out that, during the last three years of government led by López Obrador – who was elected in 2018 – "we do not currently have internal peace in the country, we are well aware of the presence of organized crime." And the majority of Mexican territory, including tourist destinations, remains in the hands of drug cartels.
Cárdenas also spoke out against the decline of political parties: "I am concerned that there are no proposals from political parties; we have a political life centered on confrontation." He pointed out that the opposition does not seek dialogue to reach agreements and instead focuses on attacking the president.
He said that in order to end violence in Mexico, political and economic integration is necessary in order to "expand and consolidate our freedoms."
Journalist Carmen Aristegui was also present at the symposium, and she pointed out that the country has lived through a “promise of regime change.” Cárdenas responded that “the results of a government are measured in achievements.” On the economic side, she said, “we have not managed to reverse the downward trend” following the latest inflation figure that has caused the Mexican peso to plummet against the US dollar, which this week reached 22 pesos. “We will be behind the objectives that we had achieved in previous years,” said Cárdenas.
In response, Cárdenas called on Mexico's electoral body to demand "clean, fair and well-conducted processes," stressing that democracy must be egalitarian and must be present in the daily lives of citizens.
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, former Prime Minister of Spain, pointed out the fundamental role of women in the political processes of a nation. “It took women 700 years to be able to go to university,” Rodríguez Zapatero said, declaring that universities opened 800 years ago in Europe. “Democracy is a very solid system,” Zapatero said, comparing the opinion of flat-earthers.
Finally, Cárdenas said that it is important to seek dialogue and agreement "even between opponents" to see how far it is possible to "walk together" with the effort and will of the people who fight for an egalitarian democracy.
